Religion Jesus! If, by the term religion, you primarily think of a culture of moral people or of nice sounding words with only tradition or even personal feelings giving them meaning, then we can say we don’t seek to promote what you have in mind. We do seek to promote the Jesus who is The Almighty God, a living being actively interested in, and integrally connected with our lives. Frankly this should strike you as a pretty wild claim that a living being created all that we know as the universe. It’s easier to just follow a traditional myths, including much of what is called Christianity, than come to grips with the awesome reality that this being we call God wants to have a daily relationship with each of us. However we affirm that He is, in fact, worthy of such devotion and commend Him to all who seek truth.
We believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and the sole standard for faith and conduct of individuals and the church. It teaches that mankind is a race of physical/spiritual beings who were created to rule the universe but are living under the just wrath of their creator for rebelling against Him by believing Him unworthy of trust, willfully disobeying Him and by going our own way. We are deceived if we think we can do this forever. We are also deceived if we think that being independent of our creator leads to a fulfilling, rewarding and ultimately harmonious manner of life. By God’s grace we presently live in relative ease compared to the eternal suffering that awaits those who continue their rebellion by rejecting reconciliation with God which is freely available through the obedience of faith in Jesus Christ alone.
There are many who, even though they claim to be part of the Christian fold, do not agree with what I have just stated. One root reason for the many schisms and conflicts among those who label themselves as Christian is the method by which God’s Word is interpreted. Therefore it is important to identify where I’m coming from. I use a historical, grammatical, literal method of interpretation that accounts for the progressive and accommodated nature of God’s revelation. That may seem like a mouthful of gibberish to some, but hopefully as you spend time in the site it’s meaning will become clear.
There are a number of theological buzzwords that describe various sets of beliefs that Christians use. Some make sense, but I try to avoid others unless I’m explaining them because each of them seem to be taken rigidly by their supporting faction as being totally and unquestionably true, even though to me they all have truth mixed with flaws and shortcomings – some more than others. I’ll discuss many of these in the web site. If this leaves you with some concern or just wanting to know more, you can read below the things that I take to be core non-negotiables.
The Apostles Creed
We believe in God almighty (the Father almighty)
And in Christ Jesus his only Son, our Lord
Who was born of the Holy Spirit and the virgin, Mary
Who was crucified under Pontius Pilate and was buried
And the third day rose from the dead,
Who ascended into heaven
And sits on the right hand of the Father
Whence he comes to judge the living and the dead.
And in the Holy Ghost, the holy church,
The remission of sins; the resurrection of the flesh;
The life everlasting.
Statement Of Faith
1. The Scriptures
We believe that the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and that men of God were moved by the Holy Spirit to write the very words of Scripture. The Bible is therefore without error in its original manuscripts. God has supernaturally preserved the Bible and it is the sole and final authority for faith and life providing encouragement, guidance, comfort and instruction for training in righteousness. (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).
2. The Godhead (Trinity)
We believe in one true God eternally existing in three distinct persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) each of Whom is fully and equally God; possesses all of the divine nature and attributes, and is totally worthy of our worship and service. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; John 1:14, 10:30; 2 Cor. 13:14).
3. God the Father
We believe that God the Father is the first person of the Trinity and is the eternal, unchanging, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-wise, all-loving, completely just and perfectly holy, sovereign Ruler and Sustainer of the universe. He is the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Father of all true believers. (Gen. 1:1; Isa. 40:21-28, 43:10-13; 46:8-11; John 1:12-13; 5:19-21; 17:1-5; Rom. 8:14-16; Eph. 4:6).
4. God the Son
We believe that Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity and is the only begotten eternal Son of God Who became flesh to reveal God to man, to fulfill prophecy, and to become the Savior of the lost world. In becoming man Jesus did not cease in any way to be God so that He is fully God and fully man inseparably united in one person forever.
Jesus was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; lived a sinless life; died on the cross as the all-sufficient atoning sacrifice for all of the sins of all men of all time; was buried; bodily rose from the dead; physically ascended into heaven in His glorified, resurrected body; is seated at the right hand of the Father performing His ministry of intercession; will return in the air to claim His bride – the church; and will come again to earth in bodily form, personally visibly, to conclude human history and consummate God’s eternal plan by executing judgment and ushering in the eternal state. (Matt. 24:44; Mark 10:45; Luke 1:30-55; John 1:1, 14, 18, 29, 3:16, 20:20; Acts 1:11, 2:22-24; Rom. 3:26-26, 8:34 Phil. 2:5-8, 3:20-21; 1 Thes. 4:13-18; 2 Thes. 2:7; Col. 2:3, 9;; Heb. 1:3, 9:28, 10:5-14; 1 Pet. 2:24, 3:18; 1 John 2:1; Rev. 19:11-21, 21:22).
5. God the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity Who specially came into the world on the day of Pentecost to glorify Christ and to enable men to appropriate the salvation wrought be Christ. He is the primary agent for the conviction of sin and the regeneration. Simultaneously with salvation, the Holy Spirit imparts new life, baptizes the believer into the body of Christ (His Church), and permanently indwells the believer. The Holy Spirit fills (directs and controls) those believers who are yielded to Him, enables believers to bear fruit and empowers believers to live a life free from sin’s dominion. We also believe that the Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts to believers for the purpose of edifying the church in accordance with the teachings of scripture. (John 16:7-15; Rom 8:5-13, 12:38; 1 Cor. 6:19, 12:13; Gal. 5:16-17, 22-23; Eph. 1:13-14, 4:30; 1 Pet. 4:10-11).
6. Man
We believe that man was created in the image of God by direct act of God and did not come into being as the result of evolution. Man was created to glorify God, worship and serve Him, and have fellowship with Him. Man fell through sin by disobeying God, thus incurring both physical and spiritual death, which alienated him from God. Man’s nature was thus corrupted and he is utterly lost, dead in trespasses and sins, and totally incapable of saving himself and coming back into a right relationship with God by his own merit or effort. (Gen. 1:26, 2:6, 17, 3:17-24; Isa. 59:1-2; Luke 18:26-27, Rom. 3:9-19, 23, 5:6-8; Eph. 2:1-3).
7. Satan
We believe that Satan is the instigator of evil and a real spirit being, not simply the personification of evil. He is a fallen angel who, under the sovereign permission of God, has been given temporary rulership of the earth. He was utterly defeated at the cross, but the execution of his judgment has been postponed by God until the Day of Judgment when he will be cast into the eternal lake of fire. In the meantime, he deceives the world and seeks to establish his counterfeit kingdom on earth to discredit and blaspheme God and to tempt, accuse, attack and destroy believers. He can be resisted by the believer through faith and reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit. (Gen. 3:1-5; Isa. 14:12-17; Ezek. 28:11-19; Job 1-2k; 1 John 5:19; 2 Cor. 11:14; 1 Tim. 3:6; 1 Pet. 5:8-9; James 4:7; Rev. 12:9, 20:1-3, 7-10).
8. Salvation
We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross provides the sole basis for forgiveness of sins and salvation, which is the free gift of God’s grace. Salvation is effected by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit and cannot be secured by man’s works or personal merit. Salvation is only appropriated by a person placing his faith in the finished work of Christ. Repentance is a turning toward God and away from sin and is a part of but not separate from believing faith. The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and those who receive Jesus Christ by faith are born again, have their sins forgiven, become children of God, are a new creation in Christ, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit unto the day of redemption, being kept by the power of God. (John 1:12-13, 3:1-7, 14-16, 10:27-29, 14:6; Acts 26:20; Rom 1:16, 8:14-17, 31-39, 10:9-10; 2Cor 5:17; Eph. 1:7, 13-14, 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 1:3-5).
9. The Christian Life
We believe that every Christian should live for Christ and not for himself and should, by the power of the indwelling Spirit, allow Christ to manifest His life through him to God’s glory. By ever increasing obedience to the Word of God, each believer should mature and progressively become more like Jesus. In the power of the Spirit, each believer should live a holy life; not fulfill the lusts of the flesh; exercise his spiritual gifts to build up the body Christ; witness for Christ; be personally involved in making disciples to fulfill the great commission; perform good works and bear fruit to the glory of God. (Matt. 28:18-20; John 15:8, 16; Acts 1:8; Rom. 6:11-13; 2 Cor. 5:14-15; Gal. 2:20; Eph. 2:10, 4:11-12, 4:22-24; Col. 1:10; 1 Pet. 1:15-16, 2:11, 4:10-11).
10. The Church
We believe that the church is the body of Christ of which Jesus is the Head and whose members are those who have truly received Christ by faith. The local church is a tangible expression of the body of Christ in a particular location. Since all members of the body of Christ are united in Christ by the same Spirit, they should live in love, harmony and unity, being intent on the same purpose and accepting those sectarian or denominational practices which are based on a sincere interpretation of the Bible, which do not relate to substantive doctrinal matters, and which do not in practice cause disunity or hinder the ministry. The purpose of the church is to make Christ known to lost men, to make disciples and glorify God on earth. Matt. 28:18-20; John 17; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 12:12-27; Eph. 1:20-23, 4:1-6, 12-16; Col. 1:24-29).